Senior Test Engineer in Manchester

This role is available across our London, Bristol and Manchester locations. The Government Digital Service (GDS) is the digital centre of government. We are responsible for setting, leading and delivering the vision for a modern digital government. Our priorities are to drive a modern digital government by:

• joining up public sector services
• harnessing the power of AI for the public good
• strengthening and extending our digital and data public infrastructure
• elevating leadership and investing in talent
• funding for outcomes and procuring for growth and innovation
• committing to transparency and driving accountability

We are home to the Incubator for Artificial Intelligence (I.AI), the world-leading GOV.UK and at the forefront of coordinating the UK’s geospatial strategy and activity. We lead the Government Digital and Data function and champion the work of digital teams across government. We’re part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and employ more than 1,000 people all over the UK, with hubs in Manchester, London and Bristol. The Government Digital Service is where talent translates into impact. From your first day, you’ll be working with some of the world’s most highly-skilled digital professionals, all contributing their knowledge to make change on a national scale. Join us for rewarding work that makes a difference across the UK. You will solve some of the nation’s highest-priority digital challenges, helping millions of people access services they need.

As a Senior Test Engineer, you will join the Quality Engineering team within the GOV.UK One Login program. This role involves leading test engineering efforts for product and cross-product delivery, covering both functional and non-functional testing. A key part of this role is championing quality engineering initiatives to ensure the seamless integration and delivery of reliable and resilient products. You will also have the opportunity to drive innovation in testing methodologies, mentor team members, and embed quality engineering practices throughout our software development lifecycle.

As a Senior Test Engineer, you’ll:

• drive continuous improvement by leading and guiding teams in quality engineering, and optimising quality practices and processes
• act as a subject matter expert in test engineering, continuously learning new functional and non-functional testing (performance, accessibility, resilience etc.) technologies, and supporting teams with their adoption
• lead and guide quality engineers in defining the test approach, test planning, and implementing automated test suites to ensure both functional and non-functional acceptance criteria are met
• conduct Operational Acceptance Testing (OAT) to ensure systems meet all operational requirements and are production-ready
• analyse technical, functional, and business requirements, gathering evidence to identify problems and opportunities, and ensure recommendations align with strategic business objectives
• influence the architecture and design of new features early in the development cycle to drive quality, testability, and specification adherence

We’re interested in people who:

• have proven ability to lead and manage all phases of testing (functional and non-functional) across multiple teams, from initial business understanding through to production delivery. This includes expertise in technical leadership, quality improvement, developing test strategies, automation, reporting, and testing in CI/CD environments
• have experience in leading non-functional testing, specifically Performance, Accessibility, Resilience testing and Compatibility testing. Proficient in applying a diverse range of test types, tools, and industry standards
• are an adaptable team member within a Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) environment, demonstrating competency in the deployment of relevant tools and methodologies. Initiates proactive measures to implement and champion 'shift left and shift right' quality assurance principles
• can cultivate a quality-centric, 'whole team' approach, and enhance the testing capabilities within delivery teams
• have comprehensive understanding of production testing, observability, and real‑usage monitoring. Able to implement risk‑based test strategies that guarantee system reliability and provide actionable insights into user behaviour

Please note that this role requires SC clearance, which would normally need 5 years’ UK residency in the past 5 years. This is not an absolute requirement, but supplementary checks may be needed where individuals have not lived in the UK for that period. This may mean your security clearance (and therefore your appointment) will take longer or, in some cases, not be possible. Please note DSIT cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. DSIT holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify.